The Walled City of Khvia

 

The ancient city walls that have been repaired over time.

The 30m tall Kalta Minor Minaret.

A group of school children dressed in the culture best clothes.

The entrance gate into the inner city, home of the Khan and family.

The entrance to the largest mosque.

Photos of Uzbeki tourists gathered in the unique Friday Mosque.

Some of the individually carved pillars of the Friday Mosque.

Two pillars presumed to by 1000 years old and a silly boy playing hide and seek.

The entrance to the Khans chambers and that of his first wives to the right. The others follow and the concubines are across the compound. 

A side street where some of the locals live.

One of the above ground burial sites inside the walls.

Tuesday, April 22nd.

Legend paints a vivid picture of Khiva's origins, tracing its foundation to Shem, the son of Noah, who discovered a well in this fertile land. While the exact date of its establishment remains shrouded in mystery, historical records confirm Khiva's existence as a minor fort and trading post along a branch of the Silk Road by the 8th century. In the early 16th century, Khiva ascended to prominence as the capital of the Timurid Empire. During this era, the city flourished as a bustling slave market and a pivotal point within the khanate for the following three centuries. Stepping into Khiva is like stepping back in time. This is a walled city and reminds me of Jaislemir in Ragistan in India. It is a very touristy city with many ancient buildings and monuments, madrases, mosques, masueluems, and monuments. The ancient walled city, Ichan Kala, has remarkably preserved its historic charm, offering a glimpse into life during the emirates. As we wander through its labyrinthine streets, we encounter a captivating blend of architectural wonders and archaeological treasures. Our exploration begins with the iconic Kalta Minor Minaret, a towering structure that stands as a testament to Khiva's architectural prowess. It stands at 30metres and was to be 90metres but the architect new he would be killed when it was completed so he ran away. The next king decided not to complete it. We then delved into the heart of the city, visiting the Kunya Ark, the inner citadel that once served as the residence of the khan. The Madrassa Rakhimkhon, a grand Islamic school, offers a glimpse into the city's educational heritage, but Madrassa education has been in decline for decades and after serving as a prison during the Soviet era it now serves as a hotel. In the afternoon, we venture beyond the walled city to discover more of Khiva's treasures. The Mausoleum of Pakhlavan Makhmud, a revered Sufi saint, is a place of pilgrimage and a symbol of the city's spiritual significance. The Islam Khodja Minaret and Museum showcase the city's rich history and cultural heritage. We also explore the medieval Friday Mosque, a magnificent structure that has witnessed centuries of worship. It is unique in the Muslim world as it does not have a dome and the ceiling is held up by about a hundred wooden pillars all intricately carved by different artists over the centuries. There used to be up to 79 mosques in the city, now it’s down to 9 and only 1 is active. The rest have been converted to hotels, restaurants, schools and homes. Definitely a sign of the changing times. All throughout our tour, with our local guide Innas we met many friendly local people. The young ones wanted to practise their English, the older ones smiled, or said hello and even willingly posed for photos. Finally, we visited the Tashauli Palace and Harem, offering a glimpse into the lives of the rulers and their families. We learned that the khan could have 4 wives but a 100 concubines. He could choose to engage with the ones he found most beautiful and the others would be full-time permanent servants, cleaning and preparing food for the family. Once inside there was no life afterwards. We also learned that over 400 years there were about 40 different khans and most were killed in the palace by family members, enemies or jealous wives and concubines. One last only one day when he rode off on his horse to celebrate, fell off and died. The longest ruler lasted 47 years but was supported and protected by the Soviets. The khans had to be very careful, had their food and water tasted and be suspicious of everyone. We watched a short film about the Renaissance in the Muslim world and how it preceded the European one. In fact the western world learned from the east via the caravans that traded and exchanged not only goods but ideas and knowledge of the world, the stars and the maths, along the Silk Road. In fact there was a man who created the ideas of algorithms, the name of which was derivative of his name. And the BBC announcer said that everytime you use your iPhone there is a little Uzbeki man inside making it work. Interesting. There was a green symbol of two triangles attached at the middle. This is a representation of the human body. The top point down to hell and the other to heaven and the sides represent past, present and future and the other think, say, do, the three tenants that decide whether you will ascent or not. It was a fascinating day on a warm day with blue skies. Unfortunately my stomach is not well and food doesn’t appeal, so I skipped all the meals including the evening dinner in the old town.

Tomorrow we are off to the black hole of Central Asia, Turmenistan, and apparently we will not have internet for the next 4 days. I will record it and post it when I can.

Fly to Nukus, Drive to Khiva, Uzbekistan

John at the Uzbekistan Avante-Garde in the Desert Museum.

Some of the art work inside.

This one was done by Igor Savitsky, the man who recreated the museum.

Two paintings I really liked.

Me from the overlook of the Toprak Kala.

The arid desert.

The fortification of the Ayaz Kala...

And the smaller fortress from the top of the first.

Our local guide Adana on the very windy hilltop.

 

The tunnel that lead between the two walls.

Camel available for tourist riding.

John on the other side of the complex, showing the little fortress in front of the larger one of the hill.

Sunday, April 21st. Danny’s 39th birthday

We were up at 4am to finish packing for our flight to Nukus, the capital of the autonomous region called KarakalpakstanKarakalpakstan is considered to be autonomous due to their ethnic and cultural similarities with neighbouring Kazakhstan. The Soviets once included Karakalpakstan within the boundaries of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic but transferred it to the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic in 1936 as part of Stalin's divide and rule strategy in Central Asia. Everything went well and the flight was only 90 minutes. We arrived at 9am and were picked up by our local guide for this area and a new coach, and were driven directly to the Uzbekistan Avant-Garde in the Desert Museum. The concept for the creation of this museum was an idea that a Russian artist named Igor Stavitsky dreamed up. He decided to gather up art for a community of like minded artists of the 1920-50’s. He liked this area of Central Asia and set it up in Nukus, which is about as far from the centre of any Soviet centre as you can get. I’m not an art critic and really have no knowledge of art history or art movements, but I’m not sure why it is called Avant-Garde. There were a few paintings that I would call that, but most appeared pretty realistic. Anyway it was an interesting place and we spent an hour with a guide and then another by ourselves. Then we boarded the coach and headed out into the desert. In the course of the last 2000 years there have been about 50-60 known city forts built out here as part of the Silk Road caravan route. Apparently over the years the river that ran through the area periodically changed course and caused some cities to die out or relocate. We visited two of the fortresses or qalas. These ruins date as far back as 2,000+ years ago and they represent the varied settlements of the famed Khorezm empire. We began with Toprak Qala (4th-5th century A.D.), now left as a series of mud walls and excavated rooms. We took a short hike up to the top of the complex for great views of the surrounding area. Nearby is Ayaz Qala, commanding a great view over the arid plains surrounding this promontory. Sadly both have been left to the elements and the trample of peoples feet after being excavated by archeologists and are degrading. They were built on hills commanding views of the area to protect themselves but also to be seen by the caravans. We spent about an hour at each and spent a total of 7 hours driving across the desert on very rough roads. It was hard to understand if they were constructing or deconstructing them. Most of the desert along the highway also looked to be being deconstructed as they mine road gravel, gypsum, and marble and there was a huge cement factory too. Lots of big truck on the road too. We finally arrived at our destination, Khiva, back in Uzbekistan by 7:30. We checked into our hotel quickly and then walked into the centre of this walled city for our dinner. John and I are still a little fragile so we ate sparingly of a meal of several little salads, creamed pumpkin soup, dill flavoured noodles with piece of meat and potato and a piece of honey cake. Then we went back to the room to sleep as we’re tired from a long day. 

Tashkent City Tour

The statue commemorating the 1966 earthquake.

The central mosque of Tashkent.

... and inside.

The entrance to the madras.

The bazaar from the outside...

and the inside.

John buying a meat filled bread.

The bakery.

The Metro stop that commemorates the Soviet space program.

The first woman astronaut, Valentina Tereshkova.

Another station...

 ... and a third.

The inside of the main part of the Applied Arts Museum.

The ceiling of the museum.

One of the paintings...

and some of the fabric.

Our local guide Sean.

Sunday, April 20th.

Today was the first day of our Adventure Abroad tour. We met our local guide and boarded the coach at 9:30. We had an interesting day long city tour of Tashkent. Our first stop was at the monument commemorating the 1966 earthquake that decimated the city. Sean told us that Tashkent means ‘Stone City” and has a population of 3.5 to 5 million depending where the boundaries are. It was the 4th largest city in the USSR behind Moscow, St Petersburg and Kiev. The earthquake of April 26, 1966 at 5;25am was 9 on the Richter Scale. Most of what we see now was rebuilt in a short period of time with the help of the Russians. Then we visited the Hoja Ahror Valiy Mosque, the major mosque in the city, part of which was under renovation, but we were allowed inside and could take photos. We visited a small museum that houses the oldest Koran in Uzbekistan and is written in ink on deer leather pages. We took the local Metro to several stations. All of the stations are decorated by Russian artists and are quite beautiful. One was dedicated to the astronauts of the Soviet Union. We visited the WWII war memorial and the permanent flame honouring their sacrifice. Then we had lunch at an outdoor restaurant. We were served several courses: salad and bread, borsch soup, a meat platter and a fruit platter. Then we went to Independence Square. They achieved their independence 1991. The city is very green and lush with lots of park space. There are sprinklers everywhere as the city gets no rain for four months in the summer. The last stop was the Museum of Applied Arts which was housed in the house of a famous local person. The actual walls and ceilings were stunning and a great environment for the artifacts housed there. They were from the last century of fabrics, carpets, wall hanging, musical instruments and copper works. Then back to the hotel for the evening. John and I went for a swim and then to the bar where we had a beer and a small mushroom pizza each, which were both signs of our improved health.

Meeting the Group

The group meeting in the coffee shop at our hotel.

Our guide Jordan Hawes.

The Plov restaurant.

A plate of shared meat and vegetables.

Saturday, April 19th.

After we left the pool last night we both felt quite unwell. John was vomiting most of the night and I had a very upset stomach. I assume it was from the snack We had at the side of the road and the tea they gave us. We spent a very quiet day in our room and John slept most of it. I had breakfast but that didn't really agree with my stomach. Reception called and wanted to know why we hadn’t checked out. I had to explain that our reservation switched to being under Adventures Abroad and thankfully we didn’t have to switch rooms. Later reception sent us a small bowl of fruit to apologize for the mixup. If there was a good day to be sick, this was it as we had no plans and the meet up with the tour guide and group wasn’t until six. About 4:30 I went to the pool and swam for a half hour, which felt good.

The last two days of our city wander and visit to the national park were fun but not quite what we were looking to do or see. When we went about town we had difficulty gleaning the information from John’s Lonely Planet guide and using the maps to navigate through the city without the benefit of the language or even the alphabet, as they use the Cyrillic alphabet here which is indecipherable to us. And despite the good reviews on Trip Advisor, the national park was less than spectacular and somewhat disappointing.Therefore we also learned or confirmed what I already knew, that at this stage of my life I prefer tours where a company does all the research about what to see, where to go, where to eat and where to stay. I like to just sign up and go. The pressure is off and the trip is all arranged and guided.

We met Jordan Hawes, our guide in the lobby coffee shop. We are a group of 18, the majority are Canadians, followed by Americans and one Brit. The average age is in the seventies and as you can imagine in this area of the world, is a seasoned group of world travelers. It will be interesting meeting them and traveling with them for the next 35 days. Jordan outlined the trip, expectations and things to note and then introduced us to our first local guide, Sean (his real name is unpronounceable) after which we went to dinner. John decided to give it a pass and rest up. I went. We walked about 15 minutes to a beautiful restaurant called Plov, which is a native dish of rice, meat, carrots and spices. I only had a bread roll as I wanted to give my stomach a rest too. Then Jordan had us picked up by the tour bus and dropped at the hotel. I found John in bed, I followed shortly afterwards.